News

The Big Idea

What we cover

Openly Disruptive mashes technology, commerce and culture to help you create the future:

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) is the lens that civilization uses to interact with the universe. We believe that STEM literacy is critical and can best be developed through projects.

Our economic institutions and behaviors emerged from the Industrial Age. Collaboration and peer-to-peer capabilities are redefining work and value in the 21st Century economy.

The accelerating growth of data and risk pose a paradox. Participating in a Data-Driven Sustainable Society will ensure our viability.

Why disrupt?

The future – it’s too important to leave to the professionals.
You can’t keep your community relevant in the new information age without getting all the stakeholders more involved. We’re all interdependent in this new world where information, collaboration, and innovation rule:

Entrepreneurs need talent that can apply innovative thinking; they also need a market of early adopters for their products and services

Established businesses need to have leadership with an evolving vision and a network of innovative vendors that they can use to improve their businesses

Talent needs an ongoing way to develop out-of-the-box technical, collaborative, and conceptual abilities

Citizens need to feel respected and heard as change affects the economic, legal, and social systems they are part of – they need to be able to express themselves

Policymakers and civic leaders need a holistic understanding of how to keep their communities relevant

Our culture

We think the future is emerging through a dialogue amongst stakeholders that comes to life as products, economies, culture and tools. Because it’s emerging and unknown, it’s in our best interest to intentionally explore it with an open objective spirit with all the stakeholders. Check out our Agreement to Disrupt to learn more.

Our business model

Let’s start with two words – lean and experiential. There are plenty of great programs and successes by people and organizations working in this space. We don’t plan to build a facility or run long-term programs – we plan to drive traffic to the places that are succeeding already. We aim to connect people to each other, new ideas, and new resources through thought provoking and hands-on experiences. Although we are based in St. Louis (ask sometime what St. Louis has to offer the innovators of the world), we serve a community defined by point of view and interests more than geography. To learn more, contact Dan about this innovative business model. You can participate in Openly Disruptive by:

Joining our e-mail list to stay informed

Learning how people like you can innovate through our Hands-On Ideas webcasts

Becoming part of a community of early adopters and entrepreneurs at our Disruptive Diner events

Becoming a member to get more content and more events for less

Enrolling your work or professional group to get workshops and more opportunities to think outside the box

Becoming a sponsor and letting us integrate your relevant message, product or service into what we’re doing (contact Dan at OpenlyDisruptive dot org to talk about these opportunities)